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Kevin Durant explained why he may retire at 35

Andrew Joseph
Published 3:49 p.m. ET June 11, 2018

Kevin Durant is in the prime of his basketball career. The Warriors star is coming off his second straight MVP performance in the NBA Finals. Yet, he already sees the end of his NBA career approaching.

Durant, who turns 30 in September, told ESPN that he can see himself retiring when he turns 35.

He compared his basketball career to an education and added that he doesn't want to be in school forever. Durant said via ESPN:

"This game, your craft, you have to continue studying it. No matter how much you enjoy it, nobody wants to be in school that long. I know I don't. At some point, you have to be ready to graduate. Thirty-five, that's just a number in my mind."

Durant's business partner Rich Kleiman was more skeptical, but he did admit that he had heard Durant mention retiring at 35 years old before.

Durant would later say that he's not chasing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's regular-season career scoring record either, which otherwise would be a reason to extend his basketball career into his late 30s.

"Because it's not about [the record]," Durant said. "I can leave the game knowing I did everything I wanted to do, my way, on my terms. That's how I want to leave the game. And if I happen to have all these accolades and these accomplishments, then that's cool. If not, I'm still cool."